Category : Roof Repairs Cost

Roof leak repair cost is an inevitable part of every home owner’s life. As it guards your home against the elements and serves as the first protective layer for the building, your roof will definitely undergo damage over time. This injury to your roof can happen because of exposure to heavy wind, rains and harsh extremes of weather. The continuing assault of these elements leads to your roof becoming degraded over time.

While it may well be that your roof looks pristine and new for many years, there is invisible damage going on under the surface. Roof leak repair costs therefore can hit at any time in the lifetime of your building, even when everything looks apparently normal.

The key to protecting against this is to take swift corrective action rather than waiting for things to grow critical. If you wait too long, you run the risk of facing higher expenses when the interior of your home is damaged.

Roof leak repair cost can be significant and strain your budget. This is what generally tempts home owners to wait until too long. However, it is far wiser to get an initial assessment of the potential damage from an expert. If all it takes is a few simple repairs to fix things, you may well avoid the need for costly replacement later on.

Roofing material calculator tips help you get the most from what is a helpful and useful tool for many home owners. It is used in calculations of the price of roofing materials. Roofing material calculator will help you arrive at a reasonably good estimate, quickly and easily.

You will be able to gauge the size and area of your roofing, and then arrive at a good estimate of how much roofing materials are needed and what the cost of them may be. All you have to do is type in the dimensions of your roof and you will be able to factor in the type of your roof and its pitch to get an average cost analysis for, say, an asphalt shingle roof.

You must first measure your roof from the ground to the top. If there are any sidings, overhangs or gables, include those into the area of your roof. Determine the pitch or slope. Type these numbers into the appropriate boxes in a roofing material calculator.

Usually these calculations are only accurate for rectangular roofs. If your building has special projections or other features, you may need to run different calculations. You can get a more rough estimate from doing a factor multiplier which takes into account the variables that make your roof unique.

High roof repair costs can be cause for concern for homeowners. Unless you are going for complete roof replacement, most roof repair jobs are done by installing new shingles over existing ones. But, again the maximum number of times you can do re-roofing is over two layers of roofing shingles. Beyond that you are supposed to go for complete removal of all three layers and laying of new shingles. Apart from this you need to replace the plywood, sheathing and shields. Using roofing cement you also re-seal all the seams. This is called patch work.

Other parts of roof repair costs include replacing flashing which seals off any gaps around the skylights, chimneys and other vents, the job of guttering, installing ridge vents and so on. Most homes have roof area of around 100 square feet. Homeowners attempt to repair roof using roofing cement. This isn’t a very cost-effective approach as the repair tends to patchy at most.

A roofing material calculator is a very helpful tool. When calculating the price of materials for your new roof, a roofing material calculator allows you to do this quickly. It enables you to estimate the size of your roof and the required roofing materials and the cost. To do a calculation, simply enter your roofing dimensions, choose roof type and pitch and it will give you the cost for 30-year asphalt roofing shingles.

Measure your roof from the ground up, adding any overhangs to the total roof size. Estimate the roof pitch (slope) and enter the dimensions and pitch into the calculator. State whether it is a Gable roof, Hip roof or Mansard roof. Only rectangular roofs can be used in these calculators, without valleys or dormers.

There are many roofs with irregular shapes, and it is not possible to account for them within the scope of these calculators. If your roof has an irregular shape or is rather cut up, try using the factor multiplier (roof difficulty setting in the calculator) for a more accurate estimation.

The results of the calculation of roofing materials, include the roof size in square feet as well as a detailed list of the required materials need for a new roof installation. It will include the following:

All roofing prices are based on what national building materials retailers such as Home Depot and Lowe’s charge for roofing materials. Prices are virtually the same here as trade prices where most contractors buy their materials. In fact, Home Depot’s price on GAF Timberline architectural shingle is actually lower than most trade roof supply places.

The following types of shingles – Three tab asphalt shingles (25 year), 30 year common architectural shingles and 50 year asphalt shingles will all have prices provided.

There are four major asphalt roofing shingle manufacturers in the USA/Canada, and the prices are averaged among them. There is also a waste factor to be taken into account for each type of roof: Gable, Hip and Mansard’s roof waste factors are 7.5 per cent. Mansard roofs have a flat roof in the center and often windows along the Mansard side, so adjustments need to be made to the waste factor at some point, as well as add an option in the calculator to select the number of Mansard roof windows.

Your roof is your home’s first line of defense, so damage to it is inevitable. Damage is caused by wind, precipitation, the sun and other adverse weather events. Your roof is slowly being degraded by these elements. Years can pass without any visible signs of harm, but gradually you may develop leaks or other signs of damage. These need to be addressed, not ignored, or the damage will spread to the interior of your home.

Because of the high costs associated with roof leak repairs and roof replacement, you may choose to hold off as long as possible. First of all though, get it checked out, as you may only need simple repairs to sort it. To find out how to identify roof damage and how much roof leak repairs cost, continue reading this buying guide.

Roof leak repair cost: Determining whether your roof needs repairs

Just like maintenance on your vehicle to avoid breakdown, the same applies to your house roof. It is cheaper in the long run to keep it in good condition than it is to wait until you have a major problem. However it is difficult to see if there are any repairs required, unless water is actually pouring through your ceiling. In order to make the process a lot less difficult, follow the steps below:

Exterior Inspection: visual inspection of roof – look for missing or damaged (curled, cracked or torn) shingles. If there is any damage and it is localized (i.e. covers less than 30 per cent of entire roof) repairs will probably solve the problem. More than 30 per cent damage may require total roof replacement. Also take into account other areas of potential leakage such as damaged chimney, ventilation pipes and roof flashing, and be sure to inspect as well.

Interior Inspection: a damaged leaking roof can be indicated by brown, yellow or grey stains, or moisture marks as well as peeling of paint on walls and/or ceilings. Take a look in your attic where roof damage could be indicated by damp rafters or leaks. A sudden rise in energy costs also makes an inspection of your roof ventilation worthwhile.

Calling in a Professional: when it comes to noticing any roof damage, although you are the first line of defense, you should also be aware of your limitations and call in a professional roofer without hesitation for inspection if required. Although it may cost a couple of hundred dollars, it could save you thousands of dollars in major roof repairs if left unattended.

Roof Leak Repair Cost: Average costs

Location can be a factor in the cost of your roof repair. Other factors include the roof type, nature of repair, the contractor themselves, and so on. Basic repairs such as replacement of asphalt or wood shingles, for one square (10 ft x 10 ft) may cost between $250 to $1000. Roof flashing repair may cost – around a skylight or chimney – $250 to $500, around a vent or pipe – $50 to $100 and valley roof flashing costs – $15 to $30 per linear foot.

Finally, the layer of materials between the trusses and joints – the roof decking that holds the roof up, and the waterproof insulated layer of this roofing, when needing replacing may cost $2.50 to $7.50 per square foot.

Roof repair cost can run very high at times. Leaving aside total roof replacement, the typical roof repairs tend to be, new shingles over existing installations (there are regulations in some places on the amount of times this is permissible), replacing plywood and shingles in a small roof area and using cement to re-seal seams (‘patch’ work).

Also, replacing metal ‘flashing’ seals around skylights and chimneys, and also guttering work. The most common roof repairs include replacing plywood, shingles and flashing on development of a leak. The average roof area requiring work tends to be 10′ x 10′. With regard to roof repair costs, some homeowners try to patch the leak in the roof using cement. This is really not a cost effective approach.

A roof repair project, although only requiring basic tools, can involve more than just basic labor skills. For example a structural issue causing a roof leak may only be detected as an underlying problem by a skilled professional. Also, more complex work involves chimneys, skylights, flashing or valleys. For these reasons homeowners consult professionals to get the job done. Depending on location and type of job, charges tend to be around $45-$75 per hour, and can take two full business days to finish.

Roof repair costs: Enhancement and improvement costs

Running all new shingles – a second and sometimes third course of shingles is requested by some homeowners to address the leak problem. The cost to install standard asphalt shingles over existing shingles or shakes, according to HomeInspectorLocator.com, will be around $1.25 to $2.00 per square foot.

Roof repair costs: Skylights

It is more expensive sorting out leaks developed in skylights. The bigger cost is a result of having to clear the entire surface around the skylight of shingles, and new flashing surrounding the fixture has to be installed before the new shingles are laid.

On average, roofing experts put the cost as $450 for materials and labor on this type of relatively small project.

What is true when considering roof repair cost? Should you hire one roof repair company over another simply because the cost is less? Is it better to get estimates from 2 or three or ten contractors? How do you know who to trust. Big companies or smaller local companies? And most important, do you need a roof repair or will the damage cost much more than a fast in-and-out repair and lead to major renovations?

Unfortunately most home owners opt for the lowest price. Does this work? Yes, sometimes. You can receive some excellent service from small local roofing businesses. You can also receive excellent service from some of the big hitters, you know – the roofing companies that have been around for 80 years or more.

But true cost is not about age or size – it is about quality service, dedication, proven track record, excellent referrals (word of mouth goes a very long way), and finally the ability of the roof repair company to understand WHY your roof needs a repair in the first place!

Getting confused yet?

Roof repair cost is also another consideration. You may get 5 different repair cost prices. One for $500, another for$1200, and another for $3200. Now what? As earlier mentioned, most of us go for the lowest price.

Dumb…

Let’s see this scenario from YOUR point of view, or possible point of view: You notice some water stains on your bedroom ceiling. Great. A leak! That’s all you need, right? So you go through the tedious task of going online (or perhaps you are one of the few remaining people still using that big, heavy, yellow book) and you make some phone calls and try your best to get someone to your house to tell you why you have stains on your bedroom ceiling.

Fine. You did your job as a home owner with a roof leak. Congratulate yourself.

But it ain’t over until the fat lady sings… you want 100% trustworthy service, no-nonsense, and you truly WANT to be able to trust the roof repair company you hire. Oh, pardon me – at a competitive price, to boot!

Fantastic! You are well on your way!

One thing though… most roofing companies do not have the time to travel to your house (often across the entire city), pay for the gas, the one or two guys sitting in the work truck driving to your house, the time to speak with you, to look in your bedroom, to check your roof, to check your attic, to check all the possible areas of your roof that MAY have caused the leak that stains your bedroom ceiling, AND to write up a report about all this FOR FREE!!!!!

Bottom line – if you really want to get excellent service, top-notch roof repair, fast and reliable service, you need to pay for it. If a roof repair business charges money to inspect problems on your roof so you can have your roof repair handled right, pay the cost of the initial visit to your home.

Think of it this way: A lessor roof repair company will not have the confidence to charge an upfront cost to visit your home because they do not value their time enough. And you will pay the cost anyway, one way or the other. Guaranteed. Be smart and don’t short-change yourself. Pay for quality.